Real Love: More Than A Feeling

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It should have gone into my spam box, but it didn't. "Love is the most wonderful feeling in the world," the email from an online card company proclaimed. Of course, love is a feeling, but it's not worth much if that's all it is. 

Unfortunately, a brief review of online dictionaries prove that the world's view of love is sadly skewed toward a physical/sexual interpretation. Certainly, that's one kind of love, but the definitions I read were lacking in the intensity and commitment of real love. 

The apostle John took it much further than a momentary, physical pleasure.

"This is real love - not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins." 1 John 4:10 nlt

"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13 niv

In one horrible act of surrender, Jesus showed us what real love looks like when He laid down His life as a sacrifice for us. That's the standard against which all claims of love should be measured.

Willing, sacrificial love for people who don't love at all is what Jesus gave.

I wouldn't have done it. I'd have let us make our choice and go straight to hell.

But God...

I say I love the world, but God really does. He loves us enough to prove it with His sacrifice.

The most important demonstration of love wasn't done with cards, candy, or flowers. It was done with the blood and nails of the cross. 

Whether we receive a tangible symbol of ardor today, or not, we can take hope that the only demonstration of love we'll ever need has already been given. 

We learned the song as children. "Jesus loves us, this I know." Our question for today is this: do we love Him?
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In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: Mercy is More Hitting the Like Button 

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